Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) Shares Up 7.7% After Earnings Beat

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. (NASDAQ:ODFL)’s share price was up 7.7% during trading on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $205.24 and last traded at $204.4530. Approximately 2,983,070 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 44% from the average daily volume of 2,070,855 shares. The stock had previously closed at $189.77.

The transportation company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.30 billion. Old Dominion Freight Line had a return on equity of 24.92% and a net margin of 18.97%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ODFL. Rothschild & Co Redburn started coverage on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. They set a “sell” rating and a $114.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $165.00 target price on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Raymond James Financial raised their price target on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line from $155.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Old Dominion Freight Line in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.33.

Institutional Trading of Old Dominion Freight Line

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ODFL. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,337 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs now owns 9,722 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the period. Bensler LLC increased its position in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Bensler LLC now owns 57,850 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,071,000 after purchasing an additional 3,779 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 3,336 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $523,000 after buying an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ethic Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Old Dominion Freight Line by 63.7% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 8,698 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,364,000 after buying an additional 3,386 shares during the period. 77.82% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Old Dominion Freight Line Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $162.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $150.74. The firm has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 9.25 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line is a U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) transportation company that provides regional, inter-regional and national freight services. Founded in 1934 and headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina, the company has grown from a regional carrier into a national freight network, operating a broad system of service centers and terminals to move shipments for shippers of varying sizes and industries.

The company’s core business is LTL trucking, offering scheduled pickup and delivery for palletized freight that does not require a full truckload.